World War II Honoree
Killed In Action
Gerald Hugh Young
Branch of Service
U.S. Marine Corps
Hometown
Columbia City, Indiana
Honored By
Orville L. Kline
Rank: Private. He was inducted into the United States Marine Corps September 10, 1943 at Indianapolis, Indiana, with recruit training at the Marine Corps Base in San Diego, California. After his graduation from boot camp, he was transferred to Camp Pendleton Oceanside, California for combat training. He served as a Demolition’s, assigned to Headquarters Company, Second Battalion, Twenty-First Marines and an element of the Third Marine Division. His division participated in the amphibious assault, and occupation of Iwo Jima Island Location: Western Pacific Theater of Operations. On Wednesday, March 7, 1945 he was reported missing in action, after a combat engagement against the Imperial Japanese Armed Forces. In remembrance of the brave, his name is permanently inscribed in the tablets of the missing, memorialized at Honolulu Memorial Location: Honolulu, Hawaii. In his Memory and Honor, he received the following Decorations posthumously: Silver Star and the Purple Heart. The Silver Star was awarded to this Marine for Distinguished Gallantry in Action and Valor in Combat against an enemy force, and the Purple Heart for his Heroism and ultimate sacrifice.